Good News Stories

This means: Your donation does not just make lives better…It puts a child on the path of re-integration into society and a good future.

How does it all play out?

NOTE: While these stories of the young people that were helped are true, all the names have been changed in order to protect their identity.

Leroy's storyLeroy was born on 27 April 1993. When he was seven years old, his mother died and his father was unable to care for him. Consequently, his grandmother, whose only source of income was a state allowance, accepted responsibility for him. His aunt, who was employed as a general worker for a local family, assisted her mother from her meagre income to provide food, clothing and education for Leroy. For some unknown reason they failed to get state assistance for his care and since his grandmother’s death two years ago, his aunt has been his sole provider.

After passing Matric in 2013, he enrolled at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) for a Bachelor of Education (Intermediate and Senior Phase) degree with the assistance of the Swellendam Bursary Fund who paid him a bursary of R4 000 per year to pay his registration fee. This support was made possible by an annual StreetSmart Swellendam donation to the Swellendam Bursary Fund for the past three years.

At present, Leroy is a final year B. Ed (Intermediate & Senior Phase) student, who has just done practice teaching at the local Primary School. He is passionate about teaching and is looking forward to completing his degree and starting to serve his community in 2018! Furthermore, he is so inspired, that he plans to study further once he has settled into the teaching profession.

Nandi’s StoryNandi is a young girl who was admitted to Kids Haven (a StreetSmart Johannesburg beneficiary) at the age of twelve. Her home circumstances are bad due to both parents being drug addicts. She was enrolled in Grade 4 at a school before coming to Kids Haven. Nandi underwent a DSD educational assessment and was assessed to be reading at a 6-7 year old level and her maths was assessed at a 7 year old level. It appeared that while she was in Grade 4, she had not been learning. Background reports specified that her previous teacher said that she was behind but she couldn’t help her. Kids Haven Bridging School has been an ideal place for her and she is learning to read. Nandi is one of the children who have changed from the PACES system to the IMPAK school curriculum. She needs extra time to learn the basics but has the ability to fast track her learning process.

Chantal and Kayla’s StoryChantal aged thirteen and her older sister, Kayla aged seventeen, arrived at Ons Plek (a StreetSmart Cape Town beneficiary) after their foster placement had broken down due to their absconding and substance abuse.

The sisters grew up with both parents but things started falling apart after the death of their father, leaving their alcoholic mother to fend for them. The sisters were removed from the care of their mother due to her alcohol addiction and placed in foster care. Their absconding behaviour started and they experimented with drugs and alcohol. They also have a younger sister who is nine, and has never been in school. Not one of the girls has been registered with Home Affairs, and thus had no birth certificates. Ons Plek recommended the removal of the youngest sibling from her mother’s care, and she too joined her sisters at Ons Plek.

The girls settled into the programme and all three were re-integrated back into education. In addition: they are registered with Home Affairs, attending school, receiving individual Counselling sessions, learning a new skill, i.e. knitting, and have contact with their mother.

“Thank you again to StreetSmart for your faith in us! Your support for the year assisted us to help the girls re-create their lives off the street. We could do 178 home visits, assisted families and referred where necessary. It enabled us to achieve our aim of re-unification and continue to prepare the children for life.”

Pam Jackson, Ons Plek Director

Katlego’s StoryKatlego’s mother moved to Pretoria after running away from a family feud in the Eastern Cape. She sought refuge in a home that provided sleeping facilities for destitute mothers in the inner city. This arrangement worked well for Katlego, his two siblings and his mother until Katlego turned seventeen. He was then forced to move out of the shelter as it only catered for mothers and children under the age of seventeen. This left Katlego homeless and he started sleeping in the park across the road from the house.

His class teacher noticed that things didn’t seem well with him and contacted PEN (StreetSmart Pretoria beneficiary) to see if they could assist. PEN’s house parents and social worker worked with the Department of Social Development to get Katlego formally placed in their care. For a child who has experienced so much trauma and whose schooling has been so disrupted, Katlego’s academic performance has really surprised all! In his latest exams he achieved 80% for Mathematics! He has also started helping and influencing the other kids in our home to spend more time on their school work. Katlego is determined to study medicine and with the right support we know that this is possible.